For all that ails you during this coughing, sneezing, wheezing, sickly season…I tried this last night, after suffering for over three weeks. YES, darn it, three weeks. So I was game for anything. Well, it didn’t heal me, but it sure as heck suppressed my cough…and I think I may just sip on it every night until I’m well! Thank you Woodford Reserve and brown sugar. Packing a punch there my friend. Hello Christmas!

4 cloves
1 lemon twist
2 t brown sugar
1/4 t lemon juice
2 oz Bourbon (the finest you have on hand!)

Fill a mug with boiling water and let stand for two minutes to warm.
Meanwhile, place cloves in lemon twist and set aside.
Empty the mug and fill halfway with fresh boiling water.
Add sugar and stir to dissolve.
Add prepared lemon twist and stir.
Add lemon juice and bourbon.
Stir to combine all.

Call your cough quits!! (Almost!)

Here I am just hooking you up with plans for your turkey left overs! Just turn it in to a Southwestern Posole. I concocted this version with rotisserie chicken, as indicated below, but I guarantee it’s the perfect solution for the day after the turkey exits center stage. You’ll have everything you need right on that spice turn table and in your pantry, except perhaps the hominy. Now I know you still have to make a grocery run, so grab a can of hominy, next to the corn on the veggie aisle. And go on, mix yourself one of the cocktails on the blog, fire up the stove, and enjoy your fam, friends, and all of the togetherness. Hold them close, whoever is near; love them hard. Gobble Gobble Baby!

Breast meat of 1 Rotisserie Chicken, shredded
5 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 t chopped fresh thyme
1/2 t chopped fresh oregano
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 t cumin
1 t salt*
3/4 t chili powder
1/2 t coriander
1/4 t red pepper flakes
1 can hominy, drained and rinsed
Zest of 1 lime

Topping Options:
Diced avocado
Lime wedge
Halved cherry tomatoes
Chopped cilantro
Dollop of Mexican Crema, or sour cream
Tortilla Chips, on the side

Add the chicken broth to medium soup pot.
Bring to rapid simmer.
Add bay leaf, thyme, oregano, garlic, cumin, 1/2 t salt, chili powder, coriander, and red pepper flakes.
Reduce heat to low and simmer 15 minutes.
Add chicken, drained hominy, and lime zest.
Increase heat to medium.
Warm everything thoroughly.
Discard bay leaf.
Serve in individual bowls with desired toppings.

*I prefer lime sea salt, or Pink Himalayan Salt.

Photographed while enjoying a Margarita at my beloved Chico’s, the lively, kid-friendly establishment that the Don and I have frequented for the last 33+ years!

Danny Herrera, of the restaurant Rancho La Gloria in Tijuana, is often heralded as the one to have invented the Margarita in 1938. His inspiration is said to have been the very particular Ziegfeld dancer Marjorie King. Declaring she was allergic to all spirits except tequila, and having nothing to do with a straight tequila shot, she demanded that Herrera concoct her something special. And ta da…the margarita was born!

So, go ahead and turn off your front porch lights, head to your nearest Mexican Cantina, and enjoy a Margarita, thanking Herrera and King with each delicious sip!

Photographed at a darling, quirky little shop in Aberdeen, NC.

It’s Friday again! Get your appetizers and cocktails going. This is a simple gathering of flavors that truly packs a wallop of a touchdown. Just grab a bunch of radishes, a bundle of fresh chives, a stick of butter, and a jar of Himalayan Pink Salt. Rinse the radishes and slice a few in half. Chop chives and stir into room temperature butter, and place in small bowl. Place salt in separate small bowl. Dip radish into butter and then salt, and then smile as it slides in to your mouth, dances on your taste buds, and happily finds its way down your throat!

Now, get your backpacks out and your brains in gear for a for a little school lesson. I mean, the children are back at the books learning, so we may as well also, right? Himalayan Pink salt is one of the purest salts available for culinary and therapeutic uses. It has beautiful crystals and may simply be the purest form of salt around. It’s so lovely to see it in a bowl. The majority of the supply today comes to us from the mountains of Pakistan. Millions of years ago, there were crystallized salt beds that were covered with lava, and then with snow and ice, protecting it from modern day pollutants. Mined today in the old fashioned way, by hand, allows us to enjoy its unique purity and flavor. And a big bonus here is since the Himalayan salt is less refined and the salt crystals are larger, you are consuming less sodium per serving than regular table salt. You can thank me whenever the mood strikes you!

I ordered this on line, but heck, they sell it at your local Walmart Neighborhood Market. Hurry, Hurry to Get Some!